Few things can enhance the accessibility and immersion of the gaming medium than a high-quality, interactive controller. From sharp motion controls to adaptive haptic feedback, certain controllers have managed to prove themselves revolutionary in moving the gaming world forward.
Enhancing everything from the fast-growing world of VR to general gameplay, the innovation controllers have seen over the years has continuously pushed the boundaries of how players can interact with games. With the always fast-paced evolution of gaming year to year, it's hardly surprising that watershed moments in gaming hardware have been common from generation to generation. With customizable buttons, triggers, and adaptations, these controllers prove that most developers have barely scratched the surface of the gaming medium's innovative potential.
6 The Wii Remote Made Gaming More Physically Interactive Than Ever Before
The groundbreaking design of the Wii Remote revolutionized gaming upon its initial release back in late 2006. Its signature motion-sensing capabilities allowed players to engage physically in their gameplay like never before.
The controller picked up player movements such as pointing, tilting, and swinging and translated them into player character movements on screen. The result was a supremely immersive, interactive experience that automatically set the Wii apart from rival consoles at the time such as the Xbox 360 and the Playstation 3. Much to the chagrin of hardcore gamers, the Wii Remote's user-friendly design and general accessibility led to a major boost in casual gaming among audiences beyond the traditional gaming crowd. It also refreshed some of Nintendo's long-running franchises with a brand-new style of gameplay.
5 The Vive Wand Blends VR With More Traditional Gaming Controls
Widely regarded as pioneers of the virtual reality genre, HTC Vive introduced the innovative Vive Wand controllers back in April 2016. These impressive hand-held devices feature in-depth motion tracking, allowing players to take interactive action in virtual worlds with incredible accuracy, revolutionizing the way players can experience VR gaming.
Its arguable defining feature is the 1:1 motion tracking that permits players to interact with virtual environments in an impressively immersive way. The intuitive and natural movements the Vive Wands enable within the VR stem from its various sensors, including a touchpad, accelerometer, and gyroscope. In addition to the impressive VR tech, the Vive Wand has a set of buttons as well, allowing players to enjoy more traditional gameplay and interactions in conjunction with the advanced motion control. One of the most important contributions to the polarizing VR movement yet, the Vive Wand is an intriguing look at the potential future of gaming.
4 The Guitar Hero Controller Blended Music And Gaming Like Never Before
When it comes to the music genre in gaming, few things were more revolutionary than the classic Guitar Hero controller. Designed to mimic a real guitar, the controller came complete with a set of buttons representing frets and a strum bar.
This detailed design allowed players to fully simulate playing a guitar as they synced their movements with the on-screen notes. At the time of its initial release in 2005, the controller wowed both gamers and musicians alike, kickstarting a beloved gaming franchise in the process. The controller's relative simplicity and straightforward mechanics made it readily accessible to everyone from seasoned gamers to casual newcomers. Coupled with a fun multiplayer mode that allowed friends and family to simulate the rock band experience in their living rooms, it's hardly surprising the Guitar Hero controller became such a gaming phenomenon.
3 The Xbox Adaptive Controller Has Opened Up The Joys Of Gaming To More Players Than Ever Before
The Xbox Adaptive Controller is a groundbreaking, inclusive device designed to enhance accessibility for gamers with disabilities, particularly those with limited mobility. Equally impressive is its general customizability, with its large, adaptable design and various ports and buttons all being able to be remapped to cater to the player's needs.
Microsoft collaborated closely with a selection of disability advocates during the controller's development, ensuring it had more assistive features than any controller before it. Impressively, the controller is not limited exclusively to Xbox gaming consoles, and can be used on Windows 10 PCs among other devices, extending its utility beyond the boundaries of gaming. Overall, the controller's incredibly diverse range of uses and adaptability, coupled with its promotion of accessibility and inclusivity, makes it one of the most important contributions to the gaming medium in recent years.
2 The DualSense More Than Lives Up To Its Name
Sony permanently raised the bar with the PlayStation DualSense controller when it first dropped back in November 2020. This highly advanced update of the DualShock models employs adaptive triggers and haptic feedback to create an unparalleled level of immersion.
The controller successfully brings the game world to life thanks to its reactive and nuanced vibrations, amplifying the gaming experience like never before. At a more basic level, considerable effort has been put into improving the controller speakers and the battery life compared to earlier models. Its distinctive microtexture, which can be found on the lower shell, also makes this one of the most comfortably grippable controllers ever put on the market. Overall, it's a remarkable new generation of the seminal DualShock that originally changed gaming forever all the way back in 1995.
1 The Nintendo Switch Joy-Con Is A Jack Of All Trades
The Nintendo Switch Joy-Con has taken modern gaming innovation to new heights thanks to its knack for seamlessly switching between handheld, multiplayer, and docked modes. More versatile than anything that has come before it, the Joy-Con is a remarkable piece of adaptable gaming hardware.
These versatile controllers feature a variety of impressive functions, including motion controls, haptic feedback, and an infrared camera. The versatile features on offer enable unique gaming experiences for players that successfully transcend traditional controls. First released back in March 2017, the controller initially stumbled into technical issues in regard to its wireless gameplay and joystick maintenance. In the years since, however, updated models have tackled these issues head on, with the 2021 release providing gamers with more durable Joy-Cons. Overall, it's one of the most intriguing and unconventional controllers on offer for the eighth and ninth generations of gaming.
